Cassville Campus' first class of nursing students to graduate

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

By Lindsay Reed

Critical care
Democrat Photo/Lindsay Reed
Crowder College Cassville Campus nursing students are required to complete over 500 hours of classroom and skills lab instruction in order to earn an associates degree through the local program. This month, the college will host a pinning ceremony for its first class of nursing graduates. Pictured above, assessing a male sim patient, are Sammie Nash and Audrey Stamper.

On Dec. 16, the Crowder College Cassville Campus will hold a pinning ceremony for its first class of nursing students. The date will mark two years since the college received final approval to offer the associate degree program from the Missouri State Board of Nursing.

"This is very exciting," said Sandra Reed Wilson, Cassville nursing program coordinator. "They are going to make great nurses. They will go to all sorts of great facilities. Most of them have jobs lined up already."

The Cassville Campus welcomed its first class of nursing students on Jan. 20, 2010. Over the last two years, students have completed over 500 classroom instruction hours, including numerous hours of skills lab training, which allows students to practice clinical procedures and patient care services by participating in a variety of healthcare scenarios.

Hands on learning
Democrat Photo/Lindsay Reed
Crowder College Cassville Campus nursing students took part in skills lab training on Monday. Students practiced clinical procedures and patient care services by participating in a variety of healthcare scenarios. In the photo above, Kari Cunningham and Sabrina Gralheer assess a female sim patient, who is suffering from shortness of breath.

The pinning ceremony will be held in the Crowder College Cassville Campus Community Center at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 16. Students will participate in an official graduation ceremony at the Crowder College Neosho Campus at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 17.

In March of 2008, Crowder College received a $1.4 million U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Division grant, which was used to help implement the nursing program at Cassville. The Cassville Campus received initial approval for the nursing program from the Missouri State Board of Nursing on June 2, 2009.